


night at the goddess tower

by DullSunrise



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Cross-Post, M/M, One Shot, Pre-Time Skip, im sleepy af
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-02
Updated: 2020-08-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:14:42
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25662685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DullSunrise/pseuds/DullSunrise
Summary: aka me just wishing that it was possible to gay marry claudeim shit at summaries lmao
Relationships: My Unit | Byleth/Claude von Riegan
Comments: 2
Kudos: 26





	night at the goddess tower

**Author's Note:**

> i was gonna finally cross-post this for three houses's one year anniversary but i kept forgetting to like a dummy  
> written back in march when i was pretty much in the middle of my longest writers block so far, plus back when i could actually go to school and was busy with that so hopefully this isnt shit (because for some reason once im done writing something my mind goes from "hey this is pretty good" to "what the fuck this is shit but post it anyways")
> 
> still hope someone likes this~

He’d never danced before. Even if he technically had the whole month to prepare (especially since he attended a couple of dance lessons for the sake of one of his students, but he didn’t exactly participate), it wasn’t like a former mercenary would ever be fit for such a thing. Sure, those days had long since passed the second he became a teacher, but Byleth still felt as if his past experiences hardened him too much to have any other interests or a need to learn anything more casual. Yet here he was.

It was mandatory for him to attend, and same went for other teachers, but they all seemed to be enjoying themselves while he found himself more lost in thought about the upcoming mission rather than anything else. Later into the night, however, he couldn’t keep his mind on it. In fact, as it got harder and harder to focus, a feeling he didn’t remember ever feeling before came up. He found himself overwhelmed by other students, mainly ones he couldn’t recognize, as if the room was getting smaller, cutting off his ability to breathe. The amount of times he had to refuse a dance was staggering to him, and even at one point he was backed into a corner. Byleth honestly couldn’t blame anyone but himself for this. He really couldn’t. After all, who wouldn’t want to dance with the newest professor? He was about the same age as everyone else- making him easier for students to talk to in general- and he was quite handsome, according to some of the women around campus. He just wished that he could at least do more than just stand around and barely interact with anyone.

He didn’t know he’d be introduced to more than one unknown feeling that night.

Cheesy as it may be, he began to feel a bit safer as soon as Claude approached him. In a way Byleth didn’t want to suddenly feel alright as soon as he took his hand instead of anyone else, yet he did. Almost all at once, it was like it was just them. Nobody else. Nothing to worry about. But why was it Claude that made him feel this way?

Not like he had anything against him, no- he was admittedly one of the most interesting people he’s ever met, plus he was quite nice when they first met and wanted to take the time to get to know him (at least, that’s what he believed)- but… well…

Honestly, Byleth didn’t know why he was questioning it. If anything, it was as if all thoughts were all cut off the second he felt his hand in his, and anything else was pushed aside. That smile alone, even if it sometimes didn’t feel genuine, was enough to stop him from saying not even one word; it easily made his heart jump, and on its own could’ve kept him lost in what felt like an unexpected yet welcome reverie. All it took was a couple more heartbeats before they found themselves on the light-toned dancefloor, mixed in with the others. Of course, he wasn’t exactly familiar with dancing, so Byleth found himself nearly tripping over himself as he attempted to mimic his partner’s steps. Initially, he feared embarrassing both of them, yet that ended up quickly fading away just like everything else. Maybe this wasn’t that bad.

It didn’t take long for him to end up leaving once he got lost in the sea of students. As much as he wanted to finally stop feeling like a nervous wreck, he couldn’t. At least he did get some good out of it, he guessed.

“So that’s it? You’re leaving?” a strange voice suddenly asked. He was used to Sothis speaking out of seeming nowhere (or speaking in his head- he still wasn’t sure where she even “lives” or how she’s able to talk with him so easily, not like he’d ever ask because she probably didn’t know that either), yet Byleth got shaken up a little still. That was probably because he was technically all alone and completely forgot about her. It was also quite silent before she spoke, save for the faint murmurs of voices inside and a meow from a hidden nearby cat.

“Yeah,” he muttered in response as he began to head towards… who knows where? Just anywhere without a lot of noise or a lot of people. There wasn’t really a plan behind that.

“I understand. You barely had the time to breathe in there. Guess it must be hard to be the favorite teacher at the ball! Poor, poor professor~!”

He laughed dryly. “Ah well… I’m not everyone’s favorite…”

“Come on, was that a joke? Or did you already forget about the number of students begging you to dance?” Sothis went silent for a moment. “…Where even is there a place to run to?”

Places to run to… That was getting harder to think about. Not like he could brainstorm anything to begin with. It wasn’t until Sothis suddenly brought it up that he realized (but he was a bit upset with himself about not realizing it earlier). He could go to the Goddess Tower.

It wasn’t all that likely to see students there on a regular basis anyways. In fact, he couldn’t recall a time where he’s ever been inside. Did anyone even enter it unless for some odd special occasion he never knew about? Hopefully it wasn’t sealed off.

Conveniently enough, he was able to get in without a problem. Students, as he expected, weren’t nearby, and he could barely hear anything outside of the nighttime ambiance.

The Goddess Tower, despite the name suggesting it would be more important to the monastery rather than being just a place that happened to be connected to the church, was virtually empty. Occasionally there were some obvious signs of rodents, maybe a cricket or two, and an old, broken bird nest almost completely obscured by shadows, but aside from that, the building was home to vines and ivy. Water dripped in through a small crack in the roof- probably some rainwater that had been trapped up there somehow- and made the steps slippery to climb, but the view at the top made it worth the small trip there. Leaves hanging from a few cracks on the stone windowsill, as well as other plant life, were illuminated by moonlight as far as the eye can see, giving them a more azure look that could put anyone at ease.

For the second time that night, he could breathe.

A part of Byleth wanted to write off the first time as just something that happened. Nothing really specific, just a thing… that happened. A thing that made him feel odd. It wasn’t a bad kind of odd, but it was just a feeling that wouldn’t leave him be until then. A feeling that interrupted his other senses and made him feel… happy, he assumed. Was he curious? Yes, but at the same time, he didn’t want to know it. Sometimes, though, the whims of fate didn’t respect his wishes.

Footsteps. They were easy to hear, especially in such an abandoned place, and yet he wished that maybe he was just hearing things. Gods, he couldn’t even spend one moment alone without something happening. Sothis certainly was right about him being everyone’s favorite teacher… Eventually, the footsteps stopped as soon as whoever they belonged to reached the entrance of the room.

“Teach?” a familiar voice said. His heart skipped a beat for a moment. While he wanted to say something, he found himself unable to.

Just as he expected, Claude was there. Probably saw him leaving and decided to follow him, or maybe he just happened to meet up with him by chance. The brunette smiled. “So, what brings you to the Goddess Tower?” Before Byleth could even think, he cut himself off. “Wait. Don’t tell me. The answer is as clear as day. You couldn’t bear the ball anymore and had to escape, right?”

“Well… I wouldn’t say that exactly…” he finally managed to say, but gods he was a bad liar, and it seemed to be obvious once he noticed the hesitation in his voice.

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with admitting you’re not comfortable in a noisy crowd. Really, I get it. I’m the same way.”

“Sorry, but I don’t believe you.”

The brunette chuckled a bit. “Should’ve expected that you’d see through me, but I really do mean it. Parties aren’t really my thing. Music and fun are all well and good, yeah, but the dances those nobles do are… something else. I was never really taught to do that sort of thing. I guess you could say my upbringing was lacking in certain ways.”

Nodding in understanding, he almost smiled. Almost. “Then mine was lacking as well. I’ve never been to a ball before, so I’m still new to all this. It seems kind of enjoyable.” He paused for a second. “You’re still good at it, so maybe you just learned a few moves when you were younger, since you’re from a noble family?”

“That’s just a fancy title I secured. Who I am on the inside… Status can’t change that, at least by itself.”

Byleth noticed Claude looking away, and he honestly wanted to know what he meant. There was so much he wanted to know in general. He wasn’t sure whether or not it was because of his more antisocial upbringing or whatever, but he didn’t get what he said. What he was on the inside? It wasn’t a completely foreign term- he’s heard it before- yet his curiosity piqued. Before he could say another word, however, Claude cut him off.

“Say, Teach… have you heard the legends about this place? They say if a man and a woman pray for the same thing here, only on this night, the goddess will grant their wish without fail.”

“Why tonight?”

He shrugged. “Dunno why. I don’t think anyone knows. Must have something to do with celebrating the anniversary of the monastery’s completion… Or maybe the goddess comes down from above this night to celebrate with us. Even goddesses like to party, right? Though the truth is that it’s just some legend students here like to tell, but… maybe we could give it a shot? Would be a waste to pass this opportunity up.”

“What do you mean? Wishing? Isn’t that only with one man and one woman?” he asked, raising a brow. Maybe it was just a legend, maybe something would happen, but legends could change or be interfered with, right? That was usually how most stories went, where the protagonist would defy legends they played parts in.

“Eh… I don’t think a divine being would care that much.”

“So, what would we pray for?” Not like he had anything in particular on his mind that he wanted to acknowledge.

“Hm… How about we pray for our ambitions to come true?” Ambitions? He couldn’t think of anything that would count as one. “You don’t exactly seem like the selfish type, but even you must have an ambition or two.”

Maybe he did and didn’t realize, yet when taking a moment to think, he couldn’t help but realize he never thought about anything he really wanted to do with his life. If he could find something small to work towards, then it could be possible he’d have something. Or maybe he should try and act on urges more. He’d done it before on the battlefield right before they arrived, yeah, but where did that lead? Not like he could really think about it any longer then, since it would leave him hanging.

“I don’t think I have any,” he said, “and I don’t think I’ve even thought about it.”

“Even if you’re not aware of it, I’m sure there’s something your heart of hearts wishes for.”

Damn, he was probably right about that.

“Of course, the same goes for me. Without even realizing it, I found myself holding tight to some pretty big ambitions. If you would… I’d love for you to share in those ambitions with me, Teach. Maybe you’ll even figure out what your own ambitions are. All that aside, let’s get started before the goddess tuckers out for the evening.”

For a moment, Byleth couldn’t believe that he nearly smiled. He didn’t know why he wanted to, but it was most likely prompted by Claude’s cheesy prayer. It sounded so forced, so faked… If anything, it was quite fitting, and he low-key loved it. He loved being there with him…

“Huh. I think that should do it,” Claude said after a couple moments of silence. “The goddess will make our dreams come true now, yeah?”

“I wonder.” That’s it? That’s all you have to say? he thought to himself. Not like he was good at conversations in the first place, especially casual ones.

“At any rate, we’ve done all we can. We should probably head back soon. I’m sure everyone is looking for you. Just promise to spare a dance for me, okay?” And with that, he turned around to leave.

“Wait.” What am I doing?“ We can have that dance now, if you’d like.” He knew how he felt the first dance, and, oddly, he wanted that same experience again. And despite looking slightly puzzled at first, Claude took him up on that offer.

He finally was able to smile.


End file.
